What Do The Critics Say?

"Damon, for his part, convinces as a man fighting for his own choices. He’s fast developing into one of Hollywood’s finest actors. Blunt, in a slighter role, is still emotionally persuasive and the chemistry between the two leads is startlingly real. The fact that The Adjustment Bureau asks deeper questions is admirable, and it does so about an onscreen couple actually worth caring about. Sam Bathe FAN THE FIRE "The Adjustment Bureau," an enormously entertaining speculative thriller starring Matt Damon, would earn its kudos for ambition alone. Smart, stylish thriller that melds science fiction, romance and Hitchcock-ian intrigue with surprising ease. Damon and Blunt generate sparks that fly." Ann Hornaday WASHINGTON POST "Damon and Blunt have so much chemistry, the screen practically melts when they look at each other. The concept of love at first sight is absolutely believable. Part sci-fi, part love story and part thriller." Jenna Busch SHE KNOWS NETWORK "A surprisingly affecting sci-fi romance, aided immensely by the chemistry between stars Matt Damon and Emily Blunt. A film that’s far better than the somewhat tepid trailers would have you believe. I was pleasantly surprised by how much I enjoyed The Adjustment Bureau. It’s a damn fine film." Chris Bumbray JOBLO'S MOVIE EMPORIUM "Damon and Blunt have such palpable chemistry from their very first scene that we utterly believe he would spend an entire movie vaulting obstacles to be with her. At its beating heart, a science fiction love story. This is a pulse-pounding mix of science fiction, philosophy and theology." Brandon Fibbs BRANDON FIBBS.COM

"The climax may side-step some awkward questions, and lack a killer twist, but romantics will be more than satisfied. Damon and Blunt should pair up again. It’s a thought-provoking and intriguing set-up, pulled off with a lightness of touch by writer-director George Nolfi that sweeps you along." Henry Fitzherbert DAILY EXPRESS "The concept however, that life is one carefully co-ordinated plan, punctuated by fate, chance and coincidences, has plenty to snatch our attention. With his keen sense of decency, Damon is the film's greatest asset and it is through his protagonist's journey that much of our satisfaction is gained." Louise Keller SUN-HERALD "Hollywood can always count on Philip K. Dick, whose short story inspired The Adjustment Bureau, to bring something fresh to tired film formulas. Damon stars as David Norris. Blunt is both plucky and unconventional, a fine romantic foil for a politician eager for something unexpected in his life." Christian Toto WHAT WOULD TOTO WATCH? "Damon has never been better. The movie's other strengths include great special effects, superb cinematography, a wonderful musical score and an elegant wardrobe of high fashion designs." Keith Cohen ENTERTAINMENT SPECTRUM "Hotshot politician David Norris isn’t as focused on his career after he meets beautiful dancer Elise. "The Adjustment Bureau" becomes Deliriously romantic, with Damon and Blunt's chemistry perfectly capturing love's ability to supersede all. 2011's first mainstream movie that makes you feel something." Matt Pais RED EYE CHICAGO

The Inside Story George Nolfi was working on another script when his longtime friend and producing partner, Michael Hackett ("Paycheck"), brought up the Philip K Dick 1954 short story "Adjustment Team" during a phone call. Though he had not yet secured the rights to the story, Hackett had a solid working relationship with Philip K Dick's estate and wanted to pursue optioning and developing the project. When the producer pitched Nolfi the concept of 'Fate personified' trying to prevent a man from being with the woman he loves, Nolfi was intrigued. "He got very interested very quickly. In fact, he requested that we meet that day to talk more." Though Dick’s work can be both prescient and dystopian, the central conceit of "Adjustment Team" (that Fate is a group of people among us) melded with a love story, struck Nolfi as an original concept for a film that could dig into some of life’s “big questions” in a thrilling and compelling way. Flash forward to Nolfi’s work with Matt Damon on "Ocean’s Twelve"; during this time, he and Hackett pursued the adaptation of what would become "The Adjustment Bureau". They were certain that they wanted Damon as their lead, and Nolfi began to write the part of his protagonist with Damon in mind. The writer/director observes: "Matt’s the best everyman that we’ve got, and because of that he’s extremely believable in a love story." Damon’s interest was piqued by this tale of a man who stumbles on a vast, powerful and unseen world that exists on the periphery of our own. He told the filmmakers that if future drafts looked as good, he would be ready to join. "George has been a friend and collaborator for a long time," notes Oscar® winner Damon. "He brought this script to me that he’d written on spec, because he wanted to direct it. I was a big believer in him and felt he could do it." Nolfi took the opportunity to polish the idea before revisiting the project with Damon during The Bourne Ultimatum, which Nolfi also co-wrote. "I got the script to a place where I thought it was ready for Matt," Nolfi says. "Once he said he was interested in being involved formally; it was a back and forth collaborative process." Together, the colleagues had many philosophical conversations about the material; from these discussions came ideas that Nolfi used to improve the arc and build out his story. Damon was impressed with the manner in which Nolfi expanded Dick’s work and made it particularly relevant for a modern audience. The performer commends: "George was specific about everything—from the look of it to the types of people that he wanted to cast. He saw what he wanted to do with this piece." Since Damon ("True Grit") and Nolfi ("The Bourne Ultimatum") had both worked previously with producer Chris Moore ("American Pie I, 2 & 3"), they agreed that he would be a great partner with whom they could navigate the development of this ambitious project. So what was the hook for Moore? "I was interested in George’s take on what control we have over our own lives. I also loved that the material crosses a number of genres. There are thriller elements, action and a great love story as well as a personal crisis about what you believe in and who are you going to be. All that, plus a huge action movie about trying to outrun your Fate: that’s what popcorn movies are supposed to be." Joining the producing team was notable New York City filmmaker Bill Carraro, whose experience both in development and in physical production would prove invaluable. He first partnered with Nolfi on "The Sentinel", worked with the director for more than a year and mapped out how to physically shoot the numerous set pieces and locations written into the script as the production navigated across Manhattan. Though the 'Bourne' and 'Ocean’s' films have women in strong but supporting roles, this is one of the first projects in which Damon has been cast as the romantic lead and played someone who is specifically, and fatefully, linked to a lover. As written, David’s love interest needed to be a woman for whom he would move mountains. On the eve of the election, before David is to give his concession speech at The Waldorf Astoria hotel, he takes a moment to collect himself in the men’s room. "He’s devastated that he’s lost the election. Not just for himself, but he feels like he brought all these people along for the ride and let them down," Nolfi revealed. It is in the washroom that he encounters stunning, contemporary dancer Elise Sellas, hiding from hotel security after she was found crashing a wedding. David finds her charming and irresistible, while she recognizes him as the popular politico who is about to lose the election. He is instantly, and fatefully, drawn to her and starts to fall head over heels in love: something The Adjustment Bureau never intended to let happen. So, who are The Adjustment Bureau, this organization who manipulates us from a position of unseen, immutable power? Who are its agents that seem to be nowhere and everywhere all at once? "They have a bureaucratic system that allows them to manipulate things in such a way that our lives are subtly adjusted, nudged, bumped, moved, encouraged, coaxed and cajoled in the direction that they have determined we should be going in," is how Hackett sums them up. "The Bureau represents a cipher of all interpretations people may have for 'the other'. That other power, that thing outside yourself that guides your choices. It’s certainly not accidental that The Adjustment Bureau, distilled to its purest form, echoes a number of the great belief systems around the world, religious or otherwise." Nolfi, who makes his directorial debut with "The Adjustment Bureau", extrapolated on his concept of the organization that drives his tale. "They’re an expression of a higher power, so it’s not like a government agency that doesn’t want you to do something. They have powers that go way beyond what the earthly powers of an intelligence organization would be. They set us on the course that we are supposed to be set onto so we will follow the grand scheme, or the grand plan. To them they just work at a bureau. They might as well work in the IRS; they’re just doing their jobs." When someone goes off the page, as do David and Elise, the bureau steps in to set in place events that will get us back on our ordered path. This raises some interesting questions, such as: the concept of 'free will' and if like David and Elise, a connection is made, would it be worth fighting for? The role of Elise was a far less obvious casting choice than that of Damon's. Nolfi wanted the character to be a dancer so she could provide a balance to David’s structured, political world. "For many reasons, a dancer has a different life than a politician, far less calculating. You can argue that dance is about the purest expression of free will. Although alternately, you could say if you’re following a routine or a choreographed piece, then you don’t have any free will at all. There’s a complexity in this character that I like." Because Elise is a world-class contemporary ballerina, it was integral to her character, as well as the plot of the film, that she be an experienced professional. But as it turned out, finding the right actress with the appropriate training, as well as the right chemistry with Damon, was a trickier feat than originally considered. It meantauditioning hundreds of dancers from around the world, with Nolfi being present for dozens of the auditions. "I had envisioned the role to be played by somebody who was a professional dancer or an actress who had many years of ballet training," Nolfi recalls. "We put on tape eight or nine hundred women, and we found a few good possibilities who were professional dancers. But at the end of that process, I went to established actresses to see how they played the scenes." When acclaimed performer Emily Olivia Leah Blunt read the script, she instinctively knew a professional actress was needed for the part. "I called my agent and said this is tricky stuff and an actor should do it. If that love and that relationship doesn’t work, you don’t have a movie. That’s what I said to George, rather boldly, and he agreed." "In one meeting, Emily completely derailed my plans for casting the role," Nolfi admits. "She came in and read with Matt. We filmed the whole thing and you could just tell." After she won the role, Blunt ("The Wolfman" & "Wild Target") dedicated several months to vigorous dance training for the part. She knew portraying Elise Sellas would be immensely tough. Once her training brought her character’s physicality up to snuff, Blunt found that bringing the romance to the role of Elise was the fun part. What was the 2010 Costume Designers Guild President Award winners first thought? "Thank God. Nolfi has written a feisty, strong, layered, complicated girl who can hold her own. She’s tough, but she’s vulnerable," 2007 Women in Film Crystal Face Of The Fure Award winner Blunt says. "There was a lot to play with; the dialogue was witty, and the connection they have and how they fell in love didn’t seem contrived." But there is a hitch! It was a planned meeting, orchestrated by the agents of The Adjustment Bureau in a cunning, structured move. But they were only intended to meet once. Chris Moore (who co-produced "Good Will Hunting") elaborated on who these men are. "Fate has agents in the world, and Fate is this force. The idea behind The Bureau is that humans need a little bit of guidance throughout life to not self-destruct or blow ourselves up." For every human, there is an Adjustment Bureau case officer. In David Norris's case it's officer Harry Mitchell played by 2010 Black Reel Award winner Anthony Mackie who played Sergeant JT Sanborn in "The Hurt Locker", which won six Oscars® including Best Picture. "Anthony is a great story because we were having trouble casting the part of Harry. George went to the movies one day to see "The Hurt Locker", Moore recalls. Nolfi sent him a text message from the cinema that read, "We’ve got to cast Anthony." The feeling was mutual, Mackie says. "My manager sent the script to me, and he said, 'I have something; you’re never going to believe it.' I was surprised by the depth and clarity of the characters and the way they were written." John Slattery ("Iron Man 2") was cast as Richardson, Harry’s supervisor. "Richardson has been doing this job for a long time, and this is his red-letter case. A person in his position wants to establish himself and then move up the line. But then it starts going badly for Richardson." To round out The Adjustment Bureau’s principal cast, Nolfi cast the legendary Terence Stamp ("The Limey") as Thompson: the last resort in the hierarchy of agents to 'adjust' the Norris situation and quash insubordination. It was Nolfi’s intricate story that attracted 1965 Cannes Film Festival Best Actor Stamp to the project. "Most actors are suckers for good writing. If you send an actor a wonderful script, that’s always a great hook. It was going to be directed by the writer, which, to me, is always a wonderful thing. Great writers have a vision of the script, and who better than the writer to direct it and to manifest that vision?" What's It All About?

Do we control our destiny, or do unseen forces manipulate us? On the brink of winning a seat in the U.S. Senate, ambitious politician David Norris meets beautiful contemporary ballet dancer Elise: a woman like none he's ever known. But just as he realizes he's falling for her, mysterious men conspire to keep the two apart. When he unexpectedly glimpses the future Fate has planned for him, David realizes he wants something else: Elise. To get the only woman he's ever loved, they must race across, under and through the streets of modern-day New York. David learns he is up against the agents of Fate itself: the men of The Adjustment Bureau; who will do everything in their power to prevent David and Elise from being together. In the face of huge odds: he must risk everything to defy Fate. But first he must find a way to get past the ever vigilant men of The Adjustment Bureau.

The Verdict "Have you ever walked into a room or visited a place you've never been to before and immediately thought: "I could swear I've been here before." Or perhaps you've met someone for the first time and thought: "I'm sure we've met before." Problem is, no matter how hard you try, you just can't put your finger on the 'where and when'. Maybe, you've experienced something like acclaimed actor Terence Stamp. Very late in the life of his mother Ethel. "I was talking to her once about my dad (Tom), about how she met him and what it was like. She said to me, 'Well, he wasn’t what I would have chosen. He wasn’t what I wanted at all, but I couldn’t help myself.' I’ve thought about that a lot." Why? "Because that’s the destiny, isn’t it?" The experience of having 'been there' or 'met someone' before, is refered to as Déjà Vu. When events impact upon our lives, we instantly put it down to destiny or fate. It was meant to be. Right? Maybe not. What if our pathway through life was mapped out for us from our very first breath? A plan we never waiver from because we aren't aware it is in place. That would explain those occassions where we feel a 'connection' to a person or a place because that little blip has been corrected for us. But what if you met someone, not once, but twice. And what if you fell in love with that person? Enter "The Adjustment Bureau": those who are charged with keeping every one of us on lifes pre-destined path. They warn you to stay away. They tell you it was a mistake. It wasn't meant to be. So you move on. Until you meet for a third time and the power of love is ignited once again. It's then that you realize you want to be together, no matter what! That's the premiss of "The Adjustment Bureau", George Nolfi's big screen adaptation of the Philip K Dick short story, "Adjustment Team". It's a rippa tale starring Matt Damon and Emily Blunt, who ooze massive chemistry. They make a gorgeous onscreen couple. "The Adjustment Bureau" is both heart-stopping and at times, heart-breaking. Excellent cinematography from dual Oscar® winner John Toll. Looks good: is good. 4 1/2 STARS." Who Is Playing Who?

Matt Damon Emily Blunt John Slattery Terence Stamp Anthony Mackie Michael Kelly Anthony Ruivivar Brian Haley Lauren Hodges Laura Kenley Pedro Pascal

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David Elise Richardson Thompson Harry Charlie Traynor McCrady Police Officer Maes Robyn Lora Paul DeSanto

The Production Team Directed by George Nolfi Screenplay by George Nolfi From the Philip K. Dick short story "Adjustment Team" Produced by Bill Carraro/Michael Hackett/Chris Moore/George Nolfi Original Music by Thomas Newman Cinematography by John Toll Film Editing by Jay Rabinowitz Casting by Cathy Sandrich Production Design by Kevin Thompson Art Direction by Stephen H. Carter Costume Design by Kasia Walicka-Maimone Run Time 105 minutes Rated M [AUST] Copyright ©2011 -- All Rights Reserved ©1999-2011 - The Movie Pages & Impact Internet Services - All Rights Reserved. Protected by Australian & International Copyright, Trademark Laws & Intellectual Property Rights.